Hack Google's Chromecast Using FlashCast

You all must have heard about Chromecast. For those who don't know, Chromecast is a digital media streaming adapter developed by Google. The device, a 2.83-inch (72 mm) dongle, plays audio/video content on a high-definition television by streaming it via Wi-Fi from the Internet or local network. Users selects the media to play on their television from the Google Chrome web browser on a personal computer or from a supported app on their mobile device. Chromecast uses the DIAL (Discovery And Launch) protocol, co-developed by Netflix and YouTube, to search for available devices on a Wi-Fi network. Once a device is discovered, the protocol synchronizes information on how to connect to the device.

This gadget was rooted soon after the release of the device. However, the method wasn’t that easy. There is now an easier method to hack your Chromecast, thanks to FlashCast by XDA-DevelopersMember tchebb. The tool uses a flash drive and an OTG Micro-USB cable for the purpose, which acts as something like a custom recovery for the device. Follow the process below to hack your Chromecast:

Requirement:

• A Chromecast with a vulnerable bootloader
• The latest version of FlashCast (the download link is at the bottom of this post)
• A USB drive (minimum size 128MB) which you are willing to have erased
• A powered Micro-USB OTG cable
• Low-level disk image writing tool for Windows users, Win32DiskImager.

Instructions:

• Unzip the downloaded flashcast-1.0.zip file to extract its contents.
• Use dd or Win32DiskImager to write the .bin file (extracted in step 1) to the USB flash drive.
• Connect the male plug of your USB OTG cable to your Chromecast.
• Plug the Flash drive into the UB OTG cable’s USB-A female connector.
• With the button on your Chromecast pressed and held, plug the Micro-USB power connector into the OTG cable’s female Micro-USB port. Keep the button held throughout.
•  A red light will show up on your Chromecast for about 9 seconds, then turn white and the FlashCast logo will appear on your screen. When you see this logo, release the button on your Chromecast. The device will reboot after a few seconds. (Unplug power when it starts to boot so that it doesn’t update.)

This way you have to install FlashCast on USB drive. For more info on modding your visit the XDA Develper's official forum.

Cheers!!!